Bahaman Regulator Freezes FTX Assets
Bahaman authorities are freezing FTX’s assets and requesting a provisional liquidator from the Supreme Court.
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A local outlet posted the first page of a media release of the Securities Commission of the Bahamas. According to the release, the agency is both freezing the assets of FTX, and requesting the appointment of a provisional liquidator.
Bahaman Regulator Comes After FTX
According to the statement, the agency believes the freeze is “the prudent course of action” and is intended to stabilize the company and secure assets. The freeze came after two days of chaos for FTX which first appeared to be facing a severe liquidity crunch but soon found itself imploding.
The Bahamas Securities Commission is also requesting that the Supreme Court appoint a provisional liquidator for FTX to “obtain the best possible outcome for the customers and other stakeholders of FTX.” Among its reasons, the Commission cited the reports of potentially unlawful handling of users’ assets by the company.
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Regulatory Rumble Amidst the FTX Implosion
Ever since the implosion was triggered by Binance’s liquidation of its FTT, regulators have been reportedly keeping a close eye on the situation. In the US, the Department of Justice allegedly joined the SEC’s probe of FTX after Binance decided against trying to rescue the company.
On Thursday, a US Representative raised questions over the SEC”s handling of FTX and said that he has reports of Gensler helping SBF find a way to achieve monopoly. The White House also commented on the implosion of Bankman-Fried’s company by saying that “prudent regulation of cryptocurrencies is indeed needed”.
Apart from US and Bahamas regulators, Japanese agencies have also been stepping in. The Japanese Financial Services agency ordered FTX Japan to go into “close-only” mode this Thursday.
This is a developing story and will be updated with more information.
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Tim Fries
Tim Fries is the cofounder of The Tokenist. He has a B. Sc. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan, and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Tim served as a Senior Associate on the investment team at RW Baird's US Private Equity division, and is also the co-founder of Protective Technologies Capital, an investment firm specializing in sensing, protection and control solutions.
